The Water Crisis: Canada’s Failure to First Nations Communities
Twenty-seven long-term drinking water advisories continue to afflict First Nations communities in Canada. Photo by Council of Canadians.
On June 19, 2022, Neskantaga First Nation, an Ojibwe community located in the heart of Northern Ontario, reached its 10,000th day without clean water. This community is living through the constant nightmare of Canada’s longest consecutive boil water advisory, first put in place in February 1995. Unfortunately, Neskantaga is not alone.
The Canadian government defines a long-term boil advisory as a “public health protection message about real or potential health risks related to drinking water” that persists consecutively over a year. When Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was first elected in 2015, the number of drinking water advisories in First Nations communities across Canada surpassed one hundred. While this amount has slowly decreased over time as advisories have been lifted, additional advisories sprout annually. As of October 12, 2022, twenty-seven long-term drinking water advisories continue to afflict many families in First Nations communities. Although it is home to 7% of the world’s renewable freshwater resources, Canada suppresses accessibility to the nation’s Indigenous peoples, resulting in severe health disparities, cultural destruction, and even fatal consequences. Ultimately, the persistence of the water crisis for Canada's First Nations communities highlights an essential point: the Canadian government has neglected their responsibility to support Indigenous communities for far too long. It is time they live up to their responsibilities to take action.
How Canada Arrived at the Current First Nations Water Crisis
The water crisis is only one component of the long, treacherous relationship between First Nations communities and the Canadian government. Since the country’s birth, the Canadian federal government has legally held jurisdiction over "Indians, and Lands reserved for the Indians" as outlined in the Constitution Act of 1867. This jurisdiction is further covered in depth through the Indian Act of 1876, which grants the legal identification of Indian Status, structures local governments, and outlines land management for the reserve. The Act also provides First Nations with many supposed protections under law, including tax exemptions and reserve land protection from seizure and interference from provincial demands. Ultimately, however, these protections have proved a double-edged sword.
The water crisis that Canadian First Nations are experiencing now results from the regulated rights of other Canadian citizens not being extended to those who live on reservations. This occurrence is possible because the Indian Act limits provincial jurisdiction which governs the standards of water for a majority of Canadians. The remnants of colonialism are apparent when examining the Act. The objective of the legislation was clear as Canada’s first Prime Minister, John A. Macdonald, stated
“‘The great aim of our legislation has been to do away with the tribal system and assimilate the Indian people in all respects with the other inhabitants of the Dominion as speedily as they are fit to change”.
Historical governmental discrimination towards First Nations communities persists today; the localized government outlined in the Act delegates the responsibility of water management on reserves to First Nations chiefs and councils; however, federal jurisdiction undermined their efforts to govern. Water infrastructure is 20% self-governed, and federal funding covers the remaining cost. This funding is often inadequate, and there is no evaluation of the communities ability to pay the remainder. Thus, when efforts are made to build, operate, maintain, and monitor water and wastewater systems, Canada requires communities to follow a “lowest-bidder” principle, which does not allow local authorities to choose who works on their infrastructure. The government does not keep any record regarding the relationships between these companies and the communities they were hired to help. As a result, it is not uncommon for long-term advisories to be lifted and quickly replaced with a short-term advisory label or for projects to go unfinished due to construction companies abandoning the projects.
Accessibility to potable water is essential to adequate health and well-being. A majority of the Canadian population has water that is regulated by provincial and territorial legislation and is accessible at the turn of a tap. In Ontario, where over 70% of the boil water advisories impacting First Nations communities are concentrated, the Clean Water Act of Ontario (Bill 43) guides the province to "ensure that every Ontarian has access to safe drinking water". Contrastingly, the water in many First Nations communities is inaccessible, contaminated, or in insufficient quantities. Infrastructural issues include failures of a single community fountain that accumulates, water trucks that limit supplies and refills, defective home systems subjected to freezing in the winter, or treatment plants that are not sufficiently funded. All of which have led to boil water advisories concentrated disproportionally in these communities. There is a lack of regulation existing across all communities, which presents unique challenges to every reserve.
Small water systems, such as individual wells, which one in five homes on reservations use, do not qualify for government funding which leads to bottled water being a costly means to an end for many, highlighting a deep infrastructural issue. Families are often left to choose to utilize their limited water for drinking, cooking, or cleaning. The federal government must shift to regularly monitoring the state of systems on reserves and appropriately fund the infrastructure. This is essential to ensure every home has access to clean water instead of relying on band-aid solutions. Trucking in water while restricting the autonomy of First Nations communities is not enough to resolve their infrastructure concerns.
The Indian Act and its complexities have resulted in immense suffering for First Nations communities. The government has the ability to delay and deny progress on certain projects due to the unwarranted jurisdiction over reserve governance the Act permits, restricting self-determination of communities while continuing to allow families on reserves to live without the basic necessity of clean water.
Consequences of the Water Crisis
The government’s neglect has put the lives of individuals on First Nations in jeopardy. Water significantly impacts the development and long-term health of the children growing up in these regions. Many spend their entire childhoods without access to clean drinking water. The unfiltered water is often contaminated, and some communities have been exposed to high levels of E. coli, lead, and uranium, among other contaminants. This has had extreme consequences on health, as residents report symptoms of skin diseases, gastrointestinal problems, and even birth defects. Lack of access to clean water presents systemic health problems to First Nations communities, for instance, without water that is clean and accessible, soda is often more reliable and cheaper. The overconsumption of soda contributes to higher reported issues surrounding weight maintenance, type 2 diabetes, and cancers. First Nations communities are also disproportionately diagnosed with kidney disease, high blood pressure, and mental health conditions. These circumstances have led to the life expectancy of First Nations people to be ten years shorter than other Canadians.
Given that water access is so limited, reserves were particularly vulnerable during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the inability of communities to follow recommended guidelines such as frequent handwashing. While the Canadian government focused efforts to minimize the impacts of COVID-19 and the well-being of people throughout the country, citizens living on reserves were abandoned. Access to clean water has a direct impact on one’s health, and although recent years have shone a spotlight on the importance of public health, the harsh impacts of the water crisis have continued to be ignored.
Health is not the only aspect of First Nation life eroded by the water crisis. Water is an integral part of traditional culture. Practices such as fishing, hunting, and customary practices rely on clean water due to a "culturally-understood obligation to protect water". These cultural obligations are entwined with well-being as mercury contaminated source water leads to mutated and poisoned fish. This interconnectivity of water is immense, and the lack thereof hinders the well-being of those who live on reserves with long-term boil water advisories in terms of physical health, emotional comfort, and traditional ties.
Failed Promises, and A Pathway Forward
Clean water is only one facet of the government's enduring history of inaction, despite its promises of progress. Before coming to office in 2015, Justin Trudeau stated
“We have 93 different communities under 133 different boil-water advisories. A Canadian government led by me will address this as a top priority because it’s not right in a country like Canada. This has gone on for far too long”.
After assuming his position, he claimed that he would lift all long-term advisories within five years. That target came and went in 2021, with slow progress and communities still pleading for access to clean water. Over the years, the government earmarked large amounts of funds towards elevating the crisis over the years. However, efforts remain futile as long-term boil water advisories persist for decades and new ones arise. The endurance of water advisories throughout Canada emphasizes the endless cycle of apologies and retroactive measures, instead of providing adequate attention to supporting First Nations communities.
In December, a multi-million dollar settlement received court approval to compensate communities that have endured a long-term boil water advisory since 1995 with the aim to resolve infrastructure problems and address any damages to individuals. Almost a year has passed since the approval, and little information on the impact the settlement has had in helping First Nations communities has been published.
With murmurs of a snap election approaching, the interests of First Nations communities are once again being committed to as part of the electoral cycle. Trudeau and the Liberal Party have announced advancing reconciliation as one of the five priorities of the government. This commitment is made while the people of Neskantaga First Nation, among many others, continue to live without clean water, bringing into question the credibility of yet another promise.
The Canadian government has taken far too long in addressing these human rights violations. The slow-paced attitude indicates the government’s lack of real commitment to resolving the water crisis it manufactured. It must take swift action to address the promises made at the beginning of Trudeau’s government, because the endurance of the water crisis in a nation with abundant accessible fresh water is inexcusable. Canada is praised for its cultural mosaic and inclusivity, yet it continues to exclude First Nations communities from the need of fresh water. The persistence of this violation exposes Canada's illusive display of equality.
Victoria Gallacher is a Staff Writer for the Columbia Political Review and a junior at Barnard College studying Political Science and Human Rights.